Duterte declares 'state of lawlessness' after Philippine blast kills 14

Philippines' President Rodrigo Duterte declared on Saturday a "state of lawlessness" in the country after an explosion in a market killed 14 people in his home city while he was on a regular weekend visit there.

Police investigators inspect the area of a market where an explosion happened in Davao city, Philippines September 2, 2016. (Credit: Reuters)
Police investigators inspect the area of a market where an explosion happened in Davao city, Philippines September 2, 2016. (Credit: Reuters)

The explosion went off at about 10.30 pm at a market outside the Marco Polo hotel, a place Duterte visits often and used for meetings during a campaign for a May election that he won by a huge margin. He typically spends his weekends in Davao.

Police said 67 people were wounded in addition to the 14 dead.

Duterte, the mayor of Davao City for more than two decades, said the blast late on Friday outside a high-end hotel intensified what was an "extraordinary time" in the Philippines, and security forces would redouble efforts to tackle crime, drugs and insurgency.

There was no claim of responsibility.

Duterte canceled a trip to Brunei on Saturday in what would have been his first overseas visit as president.

Reuters